Foreign Secretary David Miliband is defending Britain's role in Afghanistan after fighting that has claimed eight lives in 24 hours. The deaths pushed Britain's overall toll in Afghanistan to 184 _ more than the number who died in the Iraq war. Miliband told the BBC Saturday that Britain would not be safe until it had built security in Afghanistan. He said it is essential to prevent Afghanistan from again becoming an «incubator for terrorism» that serves as a launching pad for attacks on the West. Miliband also said that ensuring that troops had the proper equipment is a top priority for the government. British opposition leader David Cameron says the forces operating in Afghanistan need more helicopters and that it is a «scandal» that the forces lack such equipment.
